For the Oxford Rejects

Hi sixth-formers,

I applied to Oxford for PPE over a decade ago. I promptly got rejected without an interview. On the day I got the rejection, I truly felt the world had fallen apart. Everyone I knew had acted like it was a sure thing that I'd get in. I remember skipping a whole lesson to sob in the yard at my school. 

Anyway, my life didn't end that day, despite it feeling like it did at the time. And looking back, it's very silly that I thought it had.

I had an amazing time at another university, where I met lots of amazing people, partied a lot, and fell in love with my subject. I then went on to do my graduate studies at Oxbridge, where I'm now a Prof.

The message of this post is not "don't worry if you don't get into Oxford now, you might get in later". The message is this: neither your worth, nor your future, is determined by whether you get into Oxford (or Cambridge for that matter.) I'm no more worthy or valuable than I was at 18 when I got rejected. And, certainly, not getting into Oxford did not stop me from having a successful and happy life.

To all those who got Oxford offers today, congratulations and good luck for the future. But, I'm especially wishing a wonderful future to all my fellow rejects.